11. Lain
lain
“Was it the story about you falling in shit?” I ask Greer, and he shakes his head.
“You did nothing wrong, Lain. I shouldn’t have touched her earlier,” he says, shaking his head. “She’s going through a lot, but she’s also so touch starved and in need of taking care of. I just couldn’t help myself.”
“It’s not your fault, either. She’s got a lot on her mind. I’ll go check on her.”
I walk to the back of the restaurant, giving her some time in case she really did just need to use the loo. Her words rattle around in my head about not wanting anything serious, yet Greer’s words ring so true.
She’s lost and fuck if I don’t want to help her, even if I get hurt in the process.
I rap my knuckles against the door and she eventually answers.
“Oh, Lain. I’ll be right back,” she says, her voice timid and shy.
Her eyes look glassy, and I hate it. I want to wrap her up in my arms and hold her tight.
“Maisie, I’m going to hug you now.”
“Oh, alright,” she says sheepishly and I do just that, embracing her against my body, cradling the back of her head, pressing her face against my chest. I wish she could scent me, I’d give anything to be able to soothe her in that way.
Her grip on the back of my jumper is tight as she holds me right back. I rub a hand up and down her spine, hoping that I’m at least making things better not worse.
“Do you want to go back to your room tonight?” I ask her simply, and she nods. “Alright, let’s get you tucked in, then.”
“I’m sorry, Lain. I feel like I keep dumping all my shit on you and Greer, and it’s not fair.”
“Greer and I are fully grown strong men. I think we know what we can handle.”
I can tell that she’s at war with herself, wanting to break away from the hug, but also wanting to hold on for dear life. So I hold her even tighter, resting my cheek on the top of her head.
“How about we act like you’re not on holiday, just ignore it all? You let me and Greer be your Alphas for the rest of the month, hmm?”
She pulls back, looking up at me with her eyebrows pinched. I’ve shocked her, and myself I suppose, but this intrinsic need to take care of her is just too strong.
“What?”
I probably should have run this all by Greer first, but I saw how he was looking at her.
I had to bring the man a change of trousers because he came in them.
He’ll accept the idea. If he didn’t want to get involved with her because she was leaving, he would have never taken her to Fairy Lochan in the first place.
“Greer and I will be your Alphas for your trip, no strings, no obligations. We’ll just pretend like it doesn’t have an expiration date.”
She blinks her big pretty eyes at me, pushing up her glasses.
“I’m not sure if that’s a good idea.”
“Probably not, but it sounds like a lot of fun. I’d start by taking you back to ours and I’d go down on you until all the things that were bothering you disappeared.
Then I’d pass you off to Greer, and he’d take a go.
He’d make us breakfast in the morning before going to work, and I’d take care of you again before we set off on the tour for the day.
Sounds pretty fantastic to me,” I say excitedly.
I just can’t think about the fact that she’s leaving. Or that I’m almost positive she might be the person who could bring our pack together, even if Callum doesn’t see it, even if she doesn’t see it.
“You need to get out of your head. Greer and I need someone to dote on,” I argue and she kinda sways her weight from one foot to another.
“Are you going in the loo or getting out of the way?” a man asks the both of us, and I move her further into the hall, un-obstructing his view.
“Lain, I don’t know.”
I grab her hip, pushing her against the wall slightly, her eyes shutter and she takes a deep breath as she looks up at me.
“You liked your time with Greer? You enjoyed spending time with me—with us—tonight?”
“Of course I did.”
“Then let’s just keep doing that. Except we don’t talk about you going home. You should enjoy everything Scotland has to offer, which includes me and Greer.”
“What about Callum?” she asks and I smirk.
“You can have him too,” I reply quickly and she rolls her eyes as if it’s not even in the realm of possibility.
“You know that’s not what I mean. Doesn’t he live with you?”
“Aye. But according to him, we aren’t a pack, so he doesn’t get a say right now. Do you know how fucking jealous I was bringing those pants for Greer, knowing that he got to kiss you, to touch you? I want you,” I tell her honestly.
“Just sex?”
“No. Not just sex.”
She shakes her head. “There can’t be feelings, Lain.”
“Enjoying someone’s company is a feeling. Happiness is a feeling. There’s no way to avoid feelings, Maisie.”
She looks away from me, tapping her fingers against her crossed arms.
“You know what I mean,” she says, glancing up at me.
“Alright.”
“If anyone gets in too deep, it’s over,” she says.
I give her a sharp nod, knowing damn well I’m not breaking anything off, no matter how deep I find myself. This will probably all end completely fucked up, but I can’t resist this pull.
“We should probably, I don’t know, run this by Greer?”
“Aye. Probably,” I say, grabbing her hand and bringing her back to the table. Dishes are clear and Greer’s already covered the bill.
He looks at us both cautiously, like anything we do could spook Maisie, which is totally fair, but she agreed, didn’t she?
“Maisie wants to see the house,” I tell him simply, and Maisie looks at me dubiously.
“You do?” Greer asks.
“Um…sure, yeah. I would especially just like to leave here,” she says, and I notice a few people watching our conversation.
I grab Maisie’s jacket and help her slip into it as we leave and walk back to where we left the truck. Our home is only slightly out of the main town, but just enough that walking isn’t ideal at night.
“You’re sure you want to see our place? We could take you back to your room,” Greer suggests and I wish in that moment we had telepathy or something, so I could give him a rundown.
“Is Callum going to be there?” Maisie asks, toying with the sleeve of her jacket.
“He’s still working,” Greer replies.
“Then yeah, I’d like to see your place.”
We all slide into Greer’s pick up, Maisie in the middle, which seems to be the perfect fit, if I say so myself.
The ride is short, but she seems pleased with the front of our home. It isn’t some gigantic pack house, a simple four-bedroom home with a nest in the attic space. Greer and I pretty much gutted it when Fiona left. It’s still usable, but there’s no trace that it used to belong to an Omega.
Maisie follows us through the front door. An overexcited Fergus nearly knocks her over as he bounds to the front door in greeting.
“Hey, Fergus,” she says sweetly, petting his long hair.
The dog, of course, digs his nose into her crotch. Relatable, but fucking rude.
“Fergus,” I scold him as I pull him away from her. “I swear he usually has better manners. He just seems really taken with you.”
“I’m sure.” Maisie doesn’t seem to believe me as she gives Fergus a few more pets.
She looks around the space, and I wonder what she sees. The house has personality, and while it still shows its age, we’ve done a damn good job keeping the place standing
“Your home is lovely,” she says, stopping at a picture of Callum, Greer, and me from secondary school. We each have an arm tossed around one another, beaming smiles. Though I’m no longer that young lad, I’m by no means a sad man. I like my life. I love my pack, but there’s an obvious piece missing.
“Would you like a dram?” I ask her, and Greer shakes his head. “More wine, or something else?”
“Wine sounds good,” she agrees and I lead her into the lounge, and she takes a seat on the old leather couch my dad gifted us when he downsized.
Fergus plops next to her, his tongue lulling out of his mouth as he nudges her hand for pets.
“I told you he missed you,” I tell her and she hums, leaning forward and kissing his fluffy head.
Can I be jealous that Fergus got a kiss before me?
Maisie is lightly bouncing her knee, using the dog as a distraction as Greer comes back in from the kitchen. He hands Maisie her glass of wine before handing me a whisky.
He takes the chair next to mine, giving the Omega some space as he sips his liquor.
Maisie looks at me and then to Greer.
“I think we should be Maisie’s Alphas while she’s in Scotland.”
Greer clears his throat. “Is that what you want, Maisie?” Greer asks her, and she licks the taste of wine off her lips as she nods her head.
“As long as everyone understands that there’s an end date. We’d have to all be on the same page and if someone isn’t comfortable with the agreement anymore, then we stop.”
Greer leans forward resting his forearms on his elbows.
“That’s something you’d be comfortable with?”
Maisie puts her glass of wine down, running her hands through Fergus’ hair while she speaks.
“I’ve well…I’ve been repressed in more ways than one.
It would be nice to just let loose for a while, let myself be an Omega for once and, well, I like the two of you.
I’m attracted to the both of you. You've been incredibly kind to me. I’d understand if you didn’t want to get involved knowing that there’s no future, but—”
“Come here, Maisie,” Greer says.
She stands automatically, like he Alpha barked the command, and comes to stand between his legs. His hands come to the back of her thighs in such a casual and comforting way as he speaks to her.
“You’ll tell us if it goes too far, if you’re no longer comfortable, we stop.”
“The same goes for you,” she replies and Greer nods.
He glances at me and back at Maisie.
“I think Lain is quite jealous. He hasn’t gotten a kiss yet.”
“I’m definitely feeling left out,” I reply and Maisie smirks, stepping out between Greer’s legs to come between mine. I grab her waist, sitting her down on my left leg as she looks at me. I can’t help but to look at her lips in anticipation of finally getting to taste her.
“We can’t have that can we?”
“Not even a little bit.” Without another word, I grip her chin and bring her mouth to mine. She kisses like a dream, just as I imagined she would.
Her hand wraps around the back of my neck as we kiss. Her tongue slips between my lips making me groan in pleasure. Without even thinking about it, I’m pulling her closer, like any amount of distance between us is unfathomable.
She feels perfect here and I have to push away all the nonsense of her leaving and never coming back. I just have to accept that this is what I get, and I’ll take whatever crumbs she gives me.
I want to kiss away her worries and put a smile on her face. I can set my heart to the side for that.
Maisie sighs into my mouth, almost a keening noise, begging for more.
“You need more, pet?”
“Yeah…um…yes, more,” she says and I glance over to Greer.
He’s always been big into watching and bossing everyone around.
“Take her trousers off, Lain,” he says.
Fergus watches, and Greer whistles, taking him into the kitchen.
Maise swallows thickly, but stands back up between my legs as I grab the top button. I give her a quick glance and she gives me a reassuring nod as I slowly drag the material down her legs. Her skin is buttery smooth as my knuckles glide down her legs.
She shivers as she holds on to my shoulders.
“Alright?” I ask her, and she runs her fingers through my hair in reassurance.
“Top next,” Greer says casually, sitting back in his chair, watching us as he sips on his drink.
Maisie’s skin feels flushed, as I do just that. She stands before me in a mis-matched bra and panty set and I’m not sure anyone has looked more beautiful.